Opificio delle pietre dure
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The Opificio delle Pietre Dure e Laborati di Restauro literally meaning Workshop for Hard Stones and Laboratory for Restoration is an autonomous institute of the Italian Ministry for Cultural Heritage based in Via Alfani in Florence. It is a global leader in the field of art restoration and provides teaching as one of two Italian state conservation schools (the other being the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro). The institute maintains a specialist library and archive of conservation and also a museum displaying historic examples of Pietre dure inlaid semi-precious stone decoration. A laboratory conducts research and diagnostics and provides a public climatology service.
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[edit] Origins and early history
The workshops have their origins in the Italian renaissance. They were established in 1588 at the behest of Ferdinando I de' Medici to provide the elaborate, inlaid precious and semi-precious stonework, in the Cappella dei Principi (Chapel of Princes) in the Basilica di San Lorenzo di Firenze. The technique, which originated from Byzantine mosaic, was perfected by the workshops and the artworks they produced became known as "opere di commessi Medici" ("Works of the Medici commisariat") and later as pietre dure.
The artisans, known as commessi, performed the exceptionally skilled and delicate task of inlaying thin veneers of semi-precious stones especially selected for their colour, opacity, brilliance and grain to create elaborate decorative and pictorial effects. Items of extraordinary refinement were created in this way, from furnishings to all manner of artworks. Today, the artisans trained at the Opificio assist many of the world's museums in their restoration programmes.
The workshops were originally located in the Casino Mediceo, then in the Uffizi and were finally moved to their present location in Via Alfani in 1796. After the end of the 19th Century the insitute's activities moved away from the production of works of art and towards its restoration. At first specialising in lapidary, in which the workshops were a world authority, and then later expanding into other fields.
[edit] Recent History
In 1966, the fatal tragedy of the flooding of the River Arno, also resulted in many priceless works of art requiring restoration. It provided a significant impetus for an expansion of the institute's research and restorative services. More space was needed because of the sheer number of artworks which required restoration and also, in some cases, the sheer size of the pieces themselves, such as the immense 4.48 x 3.9m painting of the crucifixion by Cimabue from the Basilica di Santa Croce. The expansion provided new workshops and laboratories in the Fortezza da Basso. Thanks to financial aid and an influx of expertise from throughout the world, the Florentine institute is today at the vanguard of restoration, combining traditional practices with modern technology.
In 1975, the Cultural Heritage Ministry consolidated all of the restoration workshops in Florence under the control of the Opificio.
Today, the institute is organised in departments that correspond to various types of artworks. It also has a school of restoration, a museum and a library. The principal workshops are still located at 78 Via Alfani in the historic centre of Florence with two additional workshops, one located in the Fortezza da Basso which accommodates large works, and the other, near the Palazzo Vecchio where work on tapestries and textiles is carried out. All work is carried out under the supervision of Dr. Cristina Acidini.
[edit] Departments
- Tapestries and carpets
- Archaeology
- Bronzes and ancient weapons
- Painted furnishings
- Painted murals
- Parchment and paper
- Stonework
- Pietra dure
- Jewellery
- Wood carving
- Terracotta
- Textiles
[edit] Museum
The small museum in the Via Alfani displays examples of pietra dure work, including cabinets, table tops and plates, demonstrating an immense repertoire of decoration, usually either flowers, fruits and animals, but also sometimes other picturesque scenes, including a famous view of the Piazza della Signoria. There is also a large baroque fireplace entirely covered in malachite, a dazzling and brilliant green stone as well as copies of painting executed in inlaid stone. Some of the exhibition space is dedicated to particular types of stone, such as the paesina, extracted near Florence, the grain and colour of which can be used to create vivid landscapes.
An exhibition of the the technical processes of pietra dura work through history, can be found on the first floor as well as a large range of finished works dating back to the time of the Medici. There are vases and furnishings decorated with Art Nouveau designs of the late 19th and early 20th century, including a tabletop with a harp and garland by Emilio Zocchi (1849) and another decorated with flowers and birds by Niccolò Betti (1855).
[edit] References
- Museum website (English)
- Official website (English)
[edit] External links
- Italian Ministry of Culture (Italian)
- The Museums of Florence (English)
